Daily Doings at the Line of Death Bar & Grill

I haven't made a "That Was The Weekend That Was" post in a while. When I have, I rarely, if ever, get any feedback on them.

Fri 1/14: Went to Bob Evans for lunch. Forgot what else I did during the day. Had a carry-in dinner at my friend Rick's.

Sat 1/15: Called Mom to wish her a happy birthday. Went through 2 boxes of binders. Hung out at Rick's place and watched Spider-Man 2 and Spider-Man 3. Played Star Trek Scene It?.

Sun 1/16: Went to UU services. Took M to the Newport Aquarium. She got upset when she wanted to see the penguin exhibit, and I told her I couldn't afford the extra cost of the tickets. I managed to take her home, where she watched computer games and videos. Prepared some boxes of books and magazines for donation.

Mon 1/17: Slept in. Got a haircut. Moved a few boxes back to storage.

I know. Boring, huh?

As many of you many know, my last job ended last week. I am now in the hunt again. And like it or not, I may have to leave Dayton, Ohio.

Now is a perfect time to go through what I've been saving and hoarding over the years.

Saturday, I went through 5 boxes. Today, I went through 3 boxes. I've made a couple of recycle runs to the local dump, dropping off unneeded cardboard and paper. Some items went to Goodwill. Plastic bags went to Kroger.

I'm making progress. But there's still a lot to be done. I've been saving this stuff for years.

I thought I would dread this. But it's fairly easy. Some of the stuff I haven't touched since 2004. And if I haven't accessed something within 5 years, I don't need it.

Woke up early this morning (7:15am) and bounded out of bed, so I could be at R's place to videotape my daughter M open up her presents. Once again, she made out like a bandit. She got two DVDs -- Toy Story 3 and Despicable Me -- and lots of soft toys.

I left R's place around 1:30pm so I could meet my friends Chris and Melissa for Christmas dinner. That went well, and the meal was good, except for Chris's dad trying to invite me to Christianity when I was telling him my struggles. I told him I was happy with my Unitarian faith.

I made another stop at R's place around 7:00pm. M was still playing with her toys, and didn't want to spend time with me. So I left around 7:30pm. Now I'm home, catching up on FB and LJ.

My mood at the moment is good. Christmas is not a holiday to spend alone at home.

As for my presents, I didn't want or ask for anything, and I'm OK with that. In the past month I bought myself a new cell phone, a Polaroid 4 GB MP3 player for $50, and some heavy socks at Dick's Sporting Goods.

Maybe I should start cleaning up the house, getting rid of extraneous cardboard, plastic, and recyclable things that have managed to find their way throughout my house.

Slept in until about 11 today. Completely forgot about choir practice at 10:30. Oops. Oh well.

Went grocery shopping. Also stopped at MotoPhoto to order the holiday cards. Then went in to work for a couple of hours. Braved the crowds at Borders, and the surrounding traffic, to get a gift card. Came home and prepared glazed carrots to the music of Supertramp's "Breakfast In America". It felt good to be cooking again. And the ground ginger I used perked me up a little more.

Brought the carrots to the USS Bismarck holiday party. Had an OK time. Wasn't really in a socializing mood. One of the guests tried to go R. Lee Ermey on one of the member's children, which didn't sit well with a lot of people. I should have called out "At ease, soldier!"

Then I left to see filkertom in a house concert. That really improved my mood. For a little while, I was able to forget my troubles -- my health issues, the state of my job, and the debt load I'm carrying.

Life sure is boring down here on earth
It's all full of work and no thanks
The rich folks get richer and the poor still are poor
And the middle class work for the banks

-Terry McGovern, "Beam Me Up Scotty"


OK. So President Obama made a deal with the devil Congressional Republicans. Caving in to those political bullies and their demands for continued tax cuts for the wealthy -- the 1% who make 23% of the GDP, according to independent Vermont senator Bernie Sanders.

( I really hope Obama knows what he's doing. )

I typically don't announce that I'm out of town until I come back home. That said, here's a summary of my last trip to Buffalo.

Wed 11/24: Worked for a couple hours. Had lunch at Skyline Chili with the regular crowd (co-workers and friends). Packed for the trip. Got stuck in Columbus rush-hour traffic. It was bumper-to-bumper from I-270 & Sawmill Rd. to I-71 and US 36. I lost about two hours in that traffic jam. Stopped for dinner in Mansfield, OH. Stopped for a late-night bite and to catch up on email at the rest stop in Angola, NY. Arrived at home around 1:30am.

Thu 11/25: A lazy day, as Thanksgiving Days usually are. Watched part of the Macy's parade and a dog show that was on TV. Went food shopping at Tops. Big Lots was open, so I stopped in. Picked up a Plantronics Bluetooth earpiece for $12. Spent the afternoon entering fuel purchase data intp my MPG spreadsheet, and configuring the Bluetooth earpiece to use with my smartphone. Had a nice Thanksgiving dinner, which I picked up at Denny's the previous evening. Called a few friends to try to schedule visits for the next couple days.

Fri 11/26: Another lazy day. Slept in and avoided the shopping malls. Had lunch with good friends Louis and Liz -- first at Ted's, then migrating to Coffee Culture. Had dinner at home. Spent the evening at home; it was too cold and dark to go out.

Sat 11/27: Did some more shopping for Mom. Stopped in at Big Lots to try to get a Polaroid 4Gb MP3 player with touch screen, but they were sold out. Had lunch at Santora's with Howard, who was in from Boston. Had dinner and good conversation with Bill and Darleen.

Sun 11/28: Had breakfast with thepolishviking. Left for Dayton. Was cloudy and overcast until I reached Fredonia, NY. Dropped off some laptop goodies for dagonell and cigfran_cg. Had a good drive until I passed Mansfield, OH. Two rear-end collisions slowed things down between Mansfield and Columbus. Dropped off a tea sampler for maedbh7. Had dinner at China Cottage.

I've been following the ongoing story of the US Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and their most recent stepped-up efforts to thwart terrorists. Specifically, I've been focused on the full-body scanning devices and the pat-down searches.

There have been a few horror stories that have received a lot of press -- a father taking off his son's shirt during a search, a bladder cancer survivor getting soaked by his own urine, a breast cacncer survivor forced to show off her prosthetic breast, allegations of fondling, etc.

What bothers me is that these searches are done "by the book", with no care or compassion exhibited by the screeners.

The full-body scans aren't that much better. The government assures us that the faces are masked out, that these images are viewed in a remote area, and that there is no way to save the images. Can I believe and trust the government? Only about as far as I can pick it up and throw it.

If I traveled by plane, I probably wouldn't object to either screening, because I know what's at stake and I don't have anything to hide. But at the same time, I'm reminded of Banjamin Franklin's quote about security vs. liberty (something like "Those that give up liberty for security deserve neither"). And if I stripped naked at the gate, I'd probably be arrested for indecent exposure.

But there has to be a better way, one that doesn't involve expensive technology.

For years, Israel has used a more human, look-you-in-the-eye approach. And as far as I know, they haven't had any problems with terrorists getting through. Why couldn't we have adopted their approach? Because the company that makes the scanners, L3 Technologies, spent lots of money lobbying Congress.

The last time I traveled by plane was 1994. If I really want to get somewhere, I'll either drive or take the bus or train.

Today was the first chance in a while I've had to get out and do some shopping.

The first stop was the Cincinnati Bell store. They sent me a coupon for a free phone (after a 2-year contract and a $50 mail-in rebate). So I opted for the Cincinnati Bell Blaze phone. I don't know the OEM, but the phone runs the Android OS and apps. The cell phone number remains the same.

Next stop was the Franklin Covey store to pick up my calendar pages for 2011 for my planner book. To my surprise, the store is no longer at the mall; another tenant is occupying the space. Guess I'll have to order them online now. The low business volume probably couldn't justify the cost of brick and mortar stores.

The next stop was Kohl's; where I bought two pairs of jeans. The pairs I already have are showing signs of wear.

After that was Kroger for food shopping. I'm bringing stuffing to tomorrow's Thanksgiving dinner at the UU Fellowship, so I needed to get the ingredients today.

Tonight is the USS Bismarck's monthly meeting. After that, it's down to Cincinnati for the Keshvar Project and Raquy & the Cavemen.

Last night, I participated in a candle-lit labyrinth walk held at my local UU fellowship.

I've walked labyrinths before, but it's been a while. It's not so much moving from the outside to the center and back again. It's the journey in between.

The chairs were cleared and stacked on both sides of the sanctuary. I'd estimate about 200 tea lights inside glass votives marked the spiral path inside the sanctuary. At the center was an altar with a stick of incense, a cast iron cauldron, and some note paper. When we reached the center, we were to write down our concerns on the paper, and burn the paper inside the cauldron. (I forgot to burn my paper the first time, so I went back in. By the time I reached the center, there were other notes folded up beside the cauldron.)

I find labyrinths to be very peaceful and meditative. As I walk inward, my mind is focused on what is going on in my life -- the questions to which I'm searching for answers, the problems to which I'm searching for solutions. I don't hurry towards the center. I take my time, walking slowly or stopping along the path. I allow my subconscious to come up with the solution or the answer. As I reach the center, I stop to meditate. I exit the labyrinth the same way I entered -- slowly, with a renewed intention.

Thanks go to Shannon, who planned this event and created the sacred space ncessary for the labyrinth.

I just got the news a few minutes ago. I start at LexisNexis on Monday for what is starting out as a 2-month gig. It could go longer, depending on their budget for next year.